The Arkansaw traveler., 1887-07-23
uy Queer Legacy.

lam very near sighted man. l am also ditfident. My diffidence has stood in my way throughout my life, it is so apparent; and it is probably through my unfortunate diffidence that 1 have so few friends. 1 hardly know soul at my club outside the card room, where it used to be my custom to play four rubbers of whist every afternoon. The card-room at the Rice and Curry Club, when l was useless member of society, was my idea of perfect bliss; there were no draughts there, no noises, no disturbing influences. Last year some of the Radical reformers- for we have Radical reformers even at the Rice and Curry-succeeded in in- troducing a ridiculous innovation. In the memofy of the oldest member, no female form, during club hours at least, was ever known to desecrate that great monastery of Oriental dervishes, the Rice and Curry. But they made an absurd addition to the rules last year. Ladies are allowed to partake of refreshments in the strangers din- ing-room at the Rice and Curry, if ac- companied by member, during cer- tain hours of the afternoon. The strangers dining room is a gruesome apartment, and don't think the la dies have much to be thankful for. With this new -fangled exception, am happy to say that the Rice aud Curry is still free from any disturbing influence.
 am by no means a brilliant whist player. object to the "Peter," and look upon it as form of swindling; it may be prejudice, it probably is. You will agree that l am not brilliant whist player when say that my loss es at the game, though I never bet, certainly used to cost me 200i, year That was very serious matter to me then, for it was before ca:ne into my fortune, before became busy man and a philanthropist.
 It is of the strange manner of my coming into the fortune, and of my becoming rhilanthropist, that am about to tell. Philanthropy, like dram-drinking, is an affection that grows on one; I, whose s,tmmum be- num was quiet rubber, am now a rabid philanthropist. This is how it came about.
 Though am very diffident man, Campbell was certainly more retiring. Campbell was China merchant. I do not mean that he sold crockery, but he had been head of great mer- camille firm in China, and in China he had made his money. I had never spoken to Campbell in my life; he was a sad-looking man, very taciturn, but he used to smoke uncommonly good cigars. He used to sit on one side of the fireplace, on the other, and there We sat and smoked far into the night. After several years, we used to nod tc each other, but we never spoke, that would have been quite contrary to the etiquette at the Rice and Curry. Wugsby-a most objectionable person, who looks upon himself as the club wit and keeps little manuscript book of jokes, in which he notes down any, thing amusing that he may pick up, and probably afterwards passes it of as his own-said that Campbell and I resembled the two statues at the gate of Bedlam, Melancholy and Having Madness. Of course he meant to hurt my feelings, but he failed; for l took the Melancholy to myself, in which there is nothing degrading, and eput the Having Madness down to Camp bell. Possibly Campbell did as I did.
 As have mid, am very sharp sighted, l sat staring at Campbell as he smoked in silence. had been in that chair for about two hours, and when l say that had just ordered my second whisky and soda, it will be seen that am not drinking man. Campbell is old-fashioned, and al- ways shows large expanse of shirt front Were my eyes deseiving me? They never yet had deceived me, those